O.J. Simpson was acquitted... Deshaun Watson's grand jury's refused to file charges. Pretty different circumstances. The depositions for the civil suits have already started. Hopefully they do them consecutively. Deshaun Watson's deposition was taking place this week. So, once his is done, he will not have a lot more to do with the case moving forward aside from a trial, if that happens. I just think that Buzbee is the type of lawyer that will demand high stakes or continue until the suit dies. I don't think throwing $100k at each of the 22 will do it. He's probably looking for $22M to make this go away, possibly more.
I just heard a short blurb and I'm not a fan of Charlie Weiss, but he was just on the morning Sirius NFL show being adamant about certain teams and how, "are you really trying to tell me Baker Mayfield can't improve their offense? Really someone is going to show me that he can't improve their team?". This is going to start to turn the longer it goes on. I saw another spot on the NFL Network the other day that was breaking down Baker's healthy vs. hurt release, then backed it up with changes statistically. There are going to be teams out there that know, in reality, Baker's skillset is better than any option they have on their team. As they get closer to camp, if the ONE guy they would take in the draft is gone, they will start to look at Baker as their option. I predict an over night trade of Baker to somewhere for a 2022 2nd round draft pick. It could come from anywhere outside of the AFC North. I'm sure clubs have already spoken with Baker's agent and know what a new contract looks like. This will all be resolved one month from today, unless another team steps up and offers a 2nd rounder before that time.
So, this excerpt was posed in a post from @Willie in the Monday Morning QB thread: "Fourth — and this is the possible outcome that Watson and the Browns need to take far more seriously than they currently are — the league could eventually place Watson on the Commissioner exempt list (i.e., paid leave) until the 22 civil cases are resolved, with an unpaid suspension coming thereafter. We’ve heard that this is a possibility. Others have, too. The best way to avoid this outcome would be to settle the cases now. - PFT" This best explains the reasoning behind the Browns contract structure. If he goes on the commissioner exempt list, the Browns have to pay his salary while on the list... Having this first year as low as it is, saves the Browns a lot of money on a player if he isn't playing while on the list. Say Watson's camp fights all charges. They could easily take another year to resolve going to trial. When the season rolls around, if they are still pending, he goes on the commissioners list and doesn't play in 2022, however the Browns are paying for him anyway. The cases get settled this time next year, after the season, one or more cases are won or he settles, then the league decides to give him a 6 game suspension, those are unpaid and I believe do not count against the cap for the Browns either. From a business point of view, this would make a lot of sense for the Browns structurally.
For starters, 13 out of 32 is less than half and I would argue is the right number anyway. Deshaun is simply good. He's a C+ QB. At least 15 teams could do worse. I mean... we don't know the full list of the 13 teams, but as @IrishDawg42 posted a few pages back there are plenty of teams who should be knocking down the door for Mayfield (and would be if the Browns' F/O hadn't tripped over themselves through this whole process). We know the interested teams in Deshaun: Browns, Colts, Steelers, Saints, Falcons, Panthers, and Eagles. Of those eight teams, seven of them definitely should have been calling - before the Colts, Falcons, and Steelers made their QB moves, they had either nothing at the position, or a guy who was a year away from retirement. The Saints and Panthers also have nothing at the position. Not a stretch to imagine the other five teams could have been: the Jets (heavily rumored), Giants (rumored), Lions, Washington (pre- and even post-Wentz deal), Denver (pre-Russell deal), and Miami (only suitor last year). I would say with the exception of Cleveland, DW is a clear upgrade to their starting QB (or lack thereof). Maybe it's also in the rating scale. A mathemetcian would say, 32 players on a normal bell curve... Worst - 1 Bad - 4 Below Average - 11 Average - 11 Great - 4 Elite - 1 I think in reality, the NFL's curve looks a bit different, but would only put 3-5 guys in the "elite" category at the moment. I'd put a lot more in the "bad" and probably bump 2-3 from "average" to "great". And maybe an additional category of "good" Worst - 1 Bad - 9 Below Average - 4 Average - 6 Good - 3 Great - 6 Elite - 3 As of right now... Elite - Tom Brady, Aaron Rodgers, Patrick Mahomes Great - Josh Allen, Dak Prescott, Russell Wilson, Justin Herbert, Lamar Jackson, Joe Burrow Good - Kirk Cousins, Ryan Tannehill, Matthew Stafford Average - Deshaun Watson, Derek Carr, Kyler Murray, Matt Ryan, McCorkle Jones, Jimmy Garoppolo Below Average - Davis Mills, Jared Goff, Carson Wentz, Mitchell Trubisky Bad - Jameis Winston, Marcus Mariota, Zach Wilson, Daniel Jones, Justin Fields, Drew Lock, Jalen Hurts, Tua Tagovailoa, Trevor Lawrence Worst - Sam Darnold (No Baker because he's currently not a starting quarterback... he'd be in the Good traunche otherwise with Cousins, Stafford, and Tannehill - guys you can win football games with but need a strong supporting cast.)
I never wanted Watson based on two things, the main reason is his lawsuit, the second is that he quit on the Texans(which Baker has now done also, he did it BEFORE they actually got DW). However, I cannot agree based on his skill set where you have DW rated. To say he isn't a better QB than Cousins and Tannehill shows the bias. Where he falls above that, is up for debate. Personally, I think Josh Allen has proven his Elite status, Herbert is actually close and Burrow would be if I didn't have injury concerns. Here are MY tiers: Elite - Tom Brady, Aaron Rodgers, Patrick Mahomes, Josh Allen Great - Dak Prescott, Russell Wilson, Justin Herbert, Lamar Jackson, Joe Burrow, Deshaun Watson, Matthew Stafford Good - Kirk Cousins, Ryan Tannehill, Derek Carr, Kyler Murray, Matt Ryan (Top 16) Average - Mac Jones, Jimmy Garoppolo Below Average - Davis Mills, Jared Goff, Carson Wentz, Mitchell Trubisky Bad - Jameis Winston, Marcus Mariota, Zach Wilson, Daniel Jones, Justin Fields, Drew Lock, Jalen Hurts, Tua Tagovailoa, Trevor Lawrence (some of which are still in the process of becoming a professional QB and subject to change THIS year *highlighted) Worst - Sam Darnold For me any of the players that fall under, good/average/below average are extremely close and could move up or down weekly. The good is more good than not, the below average are more below average than not and the average are just that, they are consistent in what expectations are. For the record, I don't think you have to have 16 QBs in the above and 16 in the below because there are 32 QBs. (edit I consider "Elite" to be untouchable... Are Burrow and Herbert untouchable? I think they are. I don't think Dak and Lamar are untouchable and everyone else on the list has proven they aren't untouchable as they have been traded. Tom Brady is in a class of his own, as he has the power being the GOAT to orchestrate what he wants. I can't stand the guy, but I think he deserves that considering what he has given the league.
True.. Personally, I watched that OJ case in real time because I was working 3rd shift back then. I honestly cannot understand how they acquitted him. The prosecution had, what seemed to be, an airtight case. It obviously wasn't since the jury did what they did, but I can't find the holes. With Watson, we don't have a fraction of the details. Let alone arguments from each side on each case or where the information originated. I am merely biased on the sheer number of women. It is very hard for me to believe in the conspiracy that 21 of the 22 women fabricated information for the sake of a money grab. Regardless, if only ONE is relevant and true, I don't really want him.
Yep... that's where it sits with me. DW re-affirmed his innocence during the introductory call and apparently is planning to continue to let the legal system work it out. If he settles even one, in that case, he's guilty in my eyes. If he somehow wins all 22? Then we can talk about reconcilation.
At the very least, he's guilty of being a total creep. What sort of prime-of-career top-tier athlete messages randos on Instagram, half of which aren't even qualified as professional massueses and requests their service 150 - 180 times a year?
That's a hard one to call as a definite also though... If he finds the accurate timeline to try 22 cases is most likely through say December of 2023 AND he is told by the league(which I hear could happen at any time) that he is placed on commissioners exempt list until all trials are over, then he is risking two things... 1) Career games 2) Millions of dollars If he is told, "look, it is in the best interest of the league that you settle this now rather than dragging it out" and he can settle without admitting guilt, then it could happen, even if he is innocent. He could potentially lose 2 1/2 seasons of play before a suspension is handed down. He's down one season already and most likely loses the bulk of 2022, regardless of whether he settles or goes to trial. If he loses 6 game suspension in 2022, he loses $365,294,118.. If he goes to trial and is suspended 6 games in 2023 he loses $16,235,294 I guess it depends on which is more important to him, can he clear his name, thus saving millions in settlement or if they feel, in a civil case, their chances are low that they will get out of this unscathed, then he stands to lose a lot more than a settlement. 22 different cases, could be heard by 22 different judges technically. A settlement could possibly be had in the neighborhood of $10M... He could easily lose that in 1-3 cases of the 22 if they go to trial, while being exonerated in the rest of the case AND each trial could cost him close to a million in lawyer fees. so going to trial, all it takes is one to believe what the woman has to say and he could lose whatever they feel like awarding them. $10M settlement, plus a million or two in law fees, vs. possibly a similar amount plus $20M + in law fees... AND lose nearly two seasons, vs 6-8 games in 2022. It sounds like they are preparing to fight every allegation, so I think we are in for the long ride. A big reason I am not a fan of trading Baker Mayfield. If given the news that they are planning on him playing in 2022, he will eventually get his head on straight, even if he skips all camps leading up to training camp. He would still give us the best opportunity to win games while Watson is gone.
The Millennial kind... These under 30 crowds would do 100% of their business on IG or TikTok if they could, many of them do..
The worst response he gave was when asked if he had any regrets. NO. How about, I wish I hadn't set up so many instances where I would "expose myself" (pun intended) to a "she said, he said" situations. With his lawyer having already admitted that "some" of the massages turned into "consensual sex", how are we to believe he was constantly and consistently seeking out "new" massage therapists, just for their theraputic value? It strains credibility at the very least. By the way AB and Kevin, would you allow your daughter to "work on DW" as a massage therapist? Second on my list of disappointing responses: "Would you consider counseling"? No I don't have a problem. Seriously? Can anyone find me another professsional athlete who has had so many and different massage therapists? Just curious, how many of them were male? Jesus, even if just for the purpose of dealing with the psychological impact of being accused, and vilified, wouldn't counseling be helpful? It would also serve as a signal to your detractors that you do take this seriously, even if you do it just for that reason. It feels like it's a kneejerk reaction, rather than something he's really thought through. It just did nothing to help me like or trust, or believe in him. Frankly the only thing in his favor is that 2 different jurisdictions have declined to press charges. That's it. Nothing else provides any support for his innocense. And innocence or guilt aside, how about some clarity on how many massages you've had, how many were male, how many were repeat therapists. A little meat to the bone. Please
I would like to think that we could get at least that, but starting to have doubts, and it's not really about his ability on the field. What is troubling me most is that after his very public letter, which was essentially a goodbye to Cleveland and the Browns, none of his teammates came to bat for him. None of them said "hey, you're our guy Bake!". Nobody said anything....The "team leader" put all that out there, and got crickets. That's alarming. Not only did nobody go to bat for him, but many of his teammates started actively recruiting OBJ and Landry to come back... We already know there are fans that are disenchanted and have been from the start, but has Baker become too unlikable among the players?
